5 boot room essentials for a practical country home

This stylish boot door was created by interior design studio Wickenden Hutley and incorporates all essential ingredients from bench to coat hooks to umbrella stand. Visit www.wickendenhutley.com

A touch of style can transform the humble boot room from an unloved extension into a warm and essential part of the English home. The boot room is a staple feature for country homes across Britain, so why should this well-loved aspect of our homes be overlooked when considering interior design?

The boot room needn’t simply be a practical entry and exit way for messier pursuits. It can and should be stylish too and by considering a few simple design tricks you can clean up this often messy living space to create an extension of your home which is a pleasure to sit in. Honest in use and often compact in size, the boot room should still be treated as part of your country home.

Here, we share our edit of five boot room essentials to furnish your own. Chosen for their balance of style with utility, this edit will make your property a joy to live in, inside and out.

Garden Trading

Stylish storage

Boot rooms are inevitably well stocked with necessities, from cleaning products to towels for mucky hands and paws, so attractive storage is essential. This log store from Garden Trading is a neat and attractive solution for loose logs to fuel your fire. If your boot room leads directly from the kitchen, consider extending the cabinetry right through. Alternatively, source a sideboard or low dresser to add storage to the space. New pieces can be purchased in sympathetic styles for period homes, or you can opt for quality antiques.

Choosing natural finishes for cabinets and countertops, like wood or stone, will help your boot room to bridge the gap between your home and the outdoors. They’re also often hard wearing, which is essential to a room that will encounter heavy footfall and daily use.

Ironmongery World

Pegged up

Hooks for hats, coats and jackets are another must for your boot room. Cast iron hooks are durable and include a tasteful nod to craftsmanship and country pursuits. They will look equally at home in contemporary and older homes alike. You can opt for a simple, rustic design or a more decorative option such as this hook from Ironmongery World.

Shutterstock

Boots off

The eponymous item that gives the boot room its identity, don’t overlook the need to remove your boots easily. Country walks make for muddy boots so purchase an attractive boot jack and position by the door for easy removal when you don’t want to get your hands dirty.

Noa & Nani

Bench mark

Monk’s benches set the benchmark when it comes to offering practical seating and storage combined. It creates the perfect spot from which to pull on boots, while the seat itself forms an ideal space to stow items. This bench from Nat & Nani has the added benefit of providing a storage solution for coats, hats and jackets. Monk’s benches come in a range of heights and widths but for unusually shaped spaces there are plenty of brands which offer bespoke designs to accommodate more challenging boot room proportions,

Bespoke corner boot area, Charlie Kingham

Alternatively, look to a cabinet maker or kitchen designer to create a tailor made solution. This smart corner seat and storage design is from Charlie Kingham design. Charlie Kingham likes to utilise every inch of space. In this scheme, he has used otherwise wasted space behind a door to include an integrated coat peg and bench unit, which enables the homeowners to sit and take off their shoes in a contained area.

Shutterstock

Sure footed

Humble but helpful, a quality doormat is a boot room essential for almost every home. Working with natural finishes will tone down the roughness of traditional coir doormats, blending it seamlessly into the rest of the interior. Alternatively, there are many decorative galvanised mats or for the proactive gardener the boot scraper designs are perfect for removing excess mud.

Love the country feel? Find out how you can recreate the country look in your kitchen and bathroom.

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